Honor Poly and create a legacy

A charitable gift to Poly allows you to have a positive impact on the school while meeting your philanthropic goals and reducing your tax burden. You can make a gift that protects your assets now, generates benefits for you and your family, and in some cases, assures you of income for life. You can also make a charitable bequest to the school, something that costs nothing to you in your lifetime but can have lasting benefits to both Poly and your heirs.

Six ways to make a planned giftEach of these six basic ways to make a planned gift is appropriate for a different set of circumstances and goals:

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Should you choose to make a focused gift to Poly that you can fulfill now or later, you would make a pledge of support to Poly now and execute an estate note. Should your pledge be unpaid at the time of your death, your pledge would be paid from estate assets. By making a gift this way, you can also ensure that the specific programs at Poly that you wish to support will receive the money you want to give.

By remembering Poly in your will through a bequest, either as a sum or a percentage of your estate, you are making a donation that will provide future support for Poly. Such a gift can significantly reduce the tax burden of an estate and is not subject to estate taxes.

Naming Poly as a beneficiary of your life insurance can fund a gift to the school or replace the value of a gifted asset. Such a method of planned giving allows the donor to make a substantial bequest for a relatively modest cost during his or her lifetime.

For many people, retirement plan benefits represent a large percentage of wealth. Special tax considerations mean that such sources — IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts), Keogh plans, profit-sharing plans and 401(k) and 403(b) plans — can be outstanding resources for funding a philanthropic donation.

By making a life-income gift to Poly, you are able to provide Poly with a generous donation while gaining an income stream for you and your family and significant tax savings. Life-income donors to Poly can select between charitable remainder unitrusts and charitable remainder annuity trusts. Such gifts benefit both the giver and the receiver.

Charitable lead trusts allow you to direct a gift to Poly for a specific time period — and choose to either benefit from the tax deduction now or reduce the gift or estate taxes for your heirs. Such a gift is often appealing to families who wish to retain property in trust but also direct a gift to Poly. Individuals wishing to use a CLT to give to Poly should consult an attorney who specializes in trusts and estates and has experience with such trusts.

What to giveWhile it’s easy to give a gift of cash to Poly, sometimes gifts of other assets such as stocks, bonds, or other property can offer additional benefits, including significant tax savings.

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Should you be a business owner with closely held stock, you can make a charitable donation of this stock and receive a deduction for its full market value. Poly may choose to retain ownership of the stock or allow your company to repurchase the stock.

Such a gift allows for an immediate charitable gift with some cost-efficient tax savings. By transferring stock from your account to ours, or sending an unendorsed stock certificate to the school, you will receive a tax deduction for the full market value of the stock but avoid long-term capital gain tax on the stock’s appreciation over time. Please contact us for more instructions should you wish to make such a gift.

Naming Poly as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy can fund a gift to the school or replace the value of a gifted asset. Such a method of planned giving allows the donor to make a substantial bequest for a relatively modest cost during his or her lifetime.

For many people, retirement plan benefits represent a large percentage of wealth. Special tax considerations mean that such sources — IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts), Keogh plans, profit-sharing plans and 401(k) and 403(b) plans — can be outstanding resources for funding a philanthropic donation.

Poly can benefit in several ways from a gift of personal property, and you can receive a charitable deduction for your donation. Should Poly be able to use the item donated, you will receive a deduction for the fair market value of the item. If not, Poly will arrange to sell the property, and you will receive a deduction that is limited to your cost basis. Please call to discuss making such a gift, the details of the transfer and how the item can be used by the school.

For more information about making a planned gift to Polytechnic School, please contact Greg O'Leary, director of individual giving, at 626-396-6340.